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Wales player ratings vs England | 2023 Summer Nations Series
By PA
Wales player ratings: England have beaten Wales 19-17 in their international match at Twickenham in what was a scrappy and at times chaotic affair in west London.
Here PA rate the Welsh players:
15. Liam Williams - 8/10
Provided a threat to England throughout the game. Elusive in attack and always looking for work.
14. Josh Adams - 6
Won his 50th cap and was denied a try by an illegal Freddie Steward tackle.
13. Joe Roberts - 8
An outstanding debut by the Scarlets centre, who ran and tackled strongly. Created a try for Tomos Williams and put himself firmly in the World Cup selection mix.
12. Nick Tompkin - 7
An accomplished performance in attack and defence from the Saracens centre. Showcased all his experience.
11. Tom Rogers - 5
A quiet game from the Scarlets wing, although he compiled one threatening attacking moment from limited opportunities.
10. Owen Williams - 6
Whether he did enough to make Wales’ final World Cup squad remains to be seen, but a solid contribution. 6
9. Tomos Williams - 8
Comfortably Wales’ first-choice number nine. Scored a try and was impressive in all areas.
1. Gareth Thomas - 6
Recovered well to lift Wales’ scrummaging effort following early England control.
2. Dewi Lake - 5
The hooker’s first game as Wales captain ended after just 26 minutes when he limped off, giving head coach Warren Gatland a major pre-World Cup scare.
3. Tomas Francis - 6
Did his job, but could come under pressure for a World Cup starting place.
4. Rhys Davies - 6
Offers Wales second-row and back-row options, which could serve him well in terms of World Cup selection.
5. Adam Beard - 5
Took over the captaincy after Lake went off, but blotted his copybook with a late yellow card that led to England’s match-winning penalty.
6. Dan Lydiate - 6
A solid defensive shift from the experienced flanker, who could find himself part of another World Cup squad.
7. Tommy Reffell - 6
Was yellow-carded for a technical offence, but also showed some impressive glimpses in attack and defence.
8. Taine Plumtree - 5
Another player whose evening ended early after he suffered what appeared an arm injury. It was a mixed-bag performance before then.
Replacements - 6
A big effort from the Wales replacements, but they could not offer a sufficient enough collective impact as England fought back.
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Latest Comments
Cane shouldn’t have been one last year, based purely on performances. Lakai is as close to a like for like of swap of Savea you’re ever likely to find, based on his short career so far at least. He has many of the same qualities - very strong ball carrier, great at the breakdown, and an absolute work horse on defence. I feel like he and Sititi could lead the way in the loose at the next WC.
I think we have become obsessed with replacing Kaino with someone exactly like him. Kaino was a perfect foil for the other loose forwards we had at the time. Based on the talent we have around at the moment those players could be made up in the aggregate by three players who are all exception all rounders - Lakai, Sititi, and Savea. Missing some height for sure but Sititi’s defensive work in the line out last year was phenomenal. He gets off the ground so quickly and was able to steal a couple of balls off the top of the springbok line out.
If our young locks coming through can actually stay fit long enough to get selected, it seems inevitable that Va’ai could end up in a hybrid 6/lock role.
Go to commentsWas strange game, full of errors and the usual refereeing decisions. Both teams suffered as a result but Ospreys discipline was a major factor. I think this weekend will be different as the Ospreys will pick a full strength team but Scarlets will gain confidence in the fact that only Tipuric was missing in the forwards and they dominated that pack for the whole 80 minutes. If they can repeat that dominance at scrum and breakdown then the Scarlets backs will always have more to offer on the front foot.
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